HJNO Sep/Oct 2024

HEALTHCARE JOURNAL OF NEW ORLEANS I  SEP / OCT 2024 37 For weekly eNews updates and to read the journal online, visit HealthcareJournalNO.com area for treatment due to the blood-brain bar- rier — a protective membrane that shields it from harmful substances but also blocks treatments, allowing the virus to persist. In addition, cells in the brain known as macrophages are extremely long-lived, making them difficult to eradicate once they become infected. Infection of macrophages is thought to contrib- ute to neurocognitive dysfunction, experienced by nearly half of those living with HIV. Eradicat- ing the virus from the brain is critical for com- prehensive HIV treatment and could significantly improve the quality of life for those with HIV- related neurocognitive problems. Researchers focused on macrophages, a type of white blood cell that harbors HIV in the brain. By using a small molecule inhibitor to block a recep- tor that increases in HIV-infected macrophages, the team successfully reduced the viral load in the brain. This approach essentially cleared the virus from brain tissue, providing a potential new treatment avenue for HIV. The small molecule inhibitor used, BLZ945, has previously been studied for therapeutic use in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and brain can- cer, but never before in the context of clearing HIV from the brain. The study, which took place at the Tulane National Primate Research Center, utilized three groups to model human HIV infection and treat- ment: an untreated control group and two groups treated with either a low or high dose of the small molecule inhibitor for 30 days. The high- dose treatment led to a notable reduction in cells expressing HIV receptor sites, as well as a 95-99% decrease in viral DNA loads in the brain. In addition to reducing viral loads, the treat- ment did not significantly impact microglia, the brain's resident immune cells, which are essential for maintaining a healthy neuroimmune environ- ment. It also did not show signs of liver toxicity at the doses tested. The next step for the research team is to test this therapy in conjunction with ART to assess its efficacy in a combined treatment approach. This could pave the way for more comprehensive strat- egies to eradicate HIV from the body entirely. This research was funded by the National Institutes of Health, including grants from the National Institute of Mental Health and the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, and was supported with resources from the Tulane National Primate Research Center base grant of the National Institutes of Health, P51 OD011104. Healthier Northshore Launches Collaborative Community Health Needs Assessment Healthier Northshore, an initiative dedicated to bringing people, organizations, and resources together to amplify healthier living through- out St. Tammany and Washington Parishes, is approaching the triennial Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) from a fresh, collab- orative lens. Senator Bill Cassidy was on hand to help announce the joint Healthier Northshore CHNA with community stakeholders and offered his sup- port of the effort. Every three years, hospitals and health systems throughout the country are required by the IRS to complete a CHNA. This systematic process eval- uates the health needs and priorities of com- munities, through the data gathered during the assessment period to identify gaps, develop strat- egies, and allocate resources to improve com- munity health. "The CHNA process affords all of us an oppor- tunity to add our opinions and ideas towards the betterment of our collective health. Aligning the focus of the Northshore's healthcare providers with the greater needs of the communities we serve is critical to improving outcomes," said Tim Riddell, MD, CEO of Ochsner's Northshore and Mississippi Gulf Coast Region. "We want to encourage everyone in the region to participate in this assessment so that we may correctly set the most impactful priorities for the next three years." The Louisiana Public Health Institute and United Way of Southeast Louisiana have been engaged to help facilitate and develop the Healthier North- shore Community Health Needs Assessment. "In the past, individual hospitals and health sys- tems conducted CHNAs specific to their popu- lations. While the data collected was valuable, it lacked a comprehensive view of the communi- ty's true needs," said Michael Williamson, United Way of Southeast Louisiana president, and CEO. "With this joint CHNA, we are collaborating with our trusted community partners to gather and analyze the data, resulting in an actionable plan that addresses our region's most pressing health needs" This joint Healthier Northshore CHNA will serve to guide the efforts of the initiative and the fol- lowing health systems/hospitals in St. Tammany and Washington Parishes: St. Tammany Health System, Ochsner Health, Slidell Memorial, Riv- erside Medical Center Lakeview Hospital, and Northshore Rehabilitation Hospital. CIS Uses Agent Drug-Coated Balloon to Treat Coronary in Stent Restenosis Abdullah Munir, MD, interventional cardiolo- gist at Cardiovascular Institute of the South (CIS), is the first in the Capital Region and second in Louisiana to use the AGENT™Drug-Coated Bal- loon, the first FDA-approved drug-coated coro- nary balloon in the U.S. for the treatment of coro- nary in-stent restenosis. The procedure took place at Lane Regional Medical Center. In-stent restenosis (ISR) occurs when a previ- ously stented artery becomes re-narrowed or blocked by scar tissue or plaque. Manufactured by Boston Scientific, the AGENT™ Drug-Coated Balloon (DCB) transfers a therapeutic dose of paclitaxel to the coronary artery wall to help pre- vent ISR reoccurrence. Doctor Convicted for $5M Healthcare Fraud Scheme A federal jury convicted a Louisiana physician yesterday for conspiring to illegally distribute over 1.8 million doses of Schedule II controlled sub- stances, including oxycodone and morphine, and for defrauding healthcare benefit programs of more than $5.4 million. According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Adrian Dexter Talbot, 58, of Slidell, owned and operated Medex Clinical Con- sultants (Medex), located in Slidell. Medex was a medical clinic that accepted cash payments from individuals seeking prescriptions for Schedule II controlled substances. Talbot routinely ignored signs that individuals frequenting Medex were drug-seeking or abusing the drugs prescribed. In 2015, Talbot took a full-time job in Pineville, Lou- isiana, and although he was no longer physically